April 2025

 This Ordo provides a calendar for the liturgical year to aid those saying the Benedictine Office for those familiar with the rubrics of the Benedictine Office.  It can be used in conjunction to the Quick start guide to the Monastic Diurnal.

Those less familiar with the Office, or looking for other supporting material, should consult the more detailed version of this Ordo available through Lulu, the How to say the Benedictine Office notes on the Saints Will Arise blog.

In addition, an English translation of the rubrics can be obtained from Libri Sancti Press.

 ABBREVIATIONS

Com: Commemoration (used for either a feast rated as a memorial, or where a feast or other day displaces another feast or day (such as during Advent and Lent). 

Default collect: The collect used at all hours other than Prime and Compline (which have their own fixed collect), except where displaced by a feast or higher level day. 

 ff: And following pages.

 L&V: Lauds and Vespers

 MD: Monastic Diurnal (St Michael’s, Farnborough editions 2005 - ).   

APRIL 2025

 

Fourth Week of Lent. 

Ordinary of Lent, MD 190* ff; collects and canticle antiphons of the Lent day. 

Sunday 30 March – Fourth Sunday of Lent (Laetare Sunday), Class I, MD 223* ff. 

Monday 31 March – Class III. 

Tuesday 1 April – Class III. 

Wednesday 2 April – Class III. 

Thursday 3 April – Class III. 

Friday 4 April – Class III; com of St Isidore at Lauds, MD [107]. 

Saturday 5 April – Class III. 1 Vespers of First Passion Sunday, MD 232* ff.

The Office during Passiontide

Passiontide (the period up to and including Wednesday in Holy Week) has its own ‘Ordinary’ which can be found in the 'of time' section of an office book.  At Matins, the Ordinary can be found at NM 278-9: The invitatory antiphon each day is for the season (Hodie si vocem Domini audieritis), and is said without the doxology; The hymn is for the season and is the same each day (Pange lingua); The readings during the week are usually patristic sermons, relating to the Gospel of the Mass set for that day; The responsories omit the doxology, instead simply repeating the response; and The chapter verse for Nocturn II is for the season (Jer 11:18-19).  The Ordinary for the day hours can be found at MD 240* ff.  At Prime to None: The antiphons, chapters and versicles are of the season of Passiontide, and can be found in the psalter section; and The collect for Terce to None is the same as for Lauds of that day.  At Lauds and Vespers: Chapters, hymns, responsories and versicles of the season replace those in the psalter section; The responsories (but not the psalms) omit the Gloria Patri, instead repeating the opening verse; The canticle antiphons are proper for each day. They generally reflect the (EF) Gospel for the day; and There is a specific collect for both Lauds and Vespers each day.

First Passion Week. 

Ordinary of Passiontide, MD 240* ff; collects and canticle antiphons of the Passiontide day. 

Sunday 6 April – (First) Passion Sunday, Class I, MD 234*. 

Monday 7 April – Class III. 

Tuesday 8 April – Class III. 

Wednesday 9 April – Class III. 

Thursday 10 April – Class III. 

Friday 11 April – Class III; com of St Leo I at Lauds, MD [108]. 

Saturday 12 April – Class III. 1 Vespers of Palm Sunday, MD 252* ff.

Holy Week. 

M-W: Ordinary of Passiontide, MD 240* ff; psalms of the day with antiphons and collect of the Holy Week day. 

Up until the Triduum, Holy Week continues to use the Ordinary of Passiontide. The key change is that Monday to Wednesday are Class I days, and a special set of antiphons is used each day at Lauds to None.

Th -Sat: All of the Triduum, MD 265 ff. 

Sunday 13 April – Second Passion Sunday or Palm Sunday, Class I, MD 255* ff. 

Monday 14 April – Class I, MD 260* ff. 

Tuesday 15 April – Class I, MD 262-3* ff. 

Wednesday 16 April – Class I, MD 263* ff.  

The Office during the Triduum 

The Office during the Triduum follows the Roman rubrics, rather than Benedictine, during this period. It is also important to note that some of the Holy Week ceremonies include parts of the Office so that those who attend them do not need to sing or say those particular hours separately. 

Matins and Lauds: The Office of Tenebrae, or Matins and Lauds, is a special feature of the Triduum. It is said in darkness, and a candle is extinguished as each of the psalms is said. Outside a monastery, the custom is to perform Tenebrae the evening before the day in question (so for Maundy Thursday, on Wednesday night, etc). Note that the Diurnal does not contain the Matins psalms for Tenebrae. If Tenebrae is sung in the evening, Compline should be said beforehand. 

Prime to None: The psalms for Prime, Terce, Sext and None during the Triduum are set out on MD 279* ff. No introductory prayer or hymns are said, and the Gloria Patri is not said at the end of each psalm. Each hour closes the antiphon ‘Christus factus est’ – each day of the Triduum, an additional phrase of the antiphon is added, as set out on MD 282*. 

Vespers: Vespers (if said) is often said quite early, in order to make room for Tenebrae/the Easter Vigil. The antiphons and psalms for Vespers can be found on MD 296* ff. As for the other hours, there are no introductory prayers; as for the other hours, the Gloria Patri is not said at the end of each psalm; the first psalm on Holy Saturday is on MD 298*; antiphons for the Magnificat each day are on MD 303*; on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, the antiphon Christus factus est is said; and on the concluding prayers for Holy Saturday, see MD 305*. 

Compline: The rubrics for Compline from Maundy Thursday to Holy Saturday are set out on MD 305* ff. Note the addition of the Nunc Dimittis.

 Thursday 17 April – Maundy Thursday, Class I, MD 265* ff. 

Friday 18 April – Good Friday, Class I, MD 309* ff. 

Saturday 19 April – Holy Saturday, Class I, MD 318* ff.

Octave of Easter. 

L&V as for Sunday, antiphons, chapter etc for Prime to None are as for the Sunday, MD 328* ff except for canticle antiphons and collect, which are of the day. 

The Easter Octave is treated (more or less) as one continuous Sunday, with the antiphons and other key texts of that day used throughout the week except for Matins.  The key moving parts are the canticle antiphons at Lauds and Vespers (which are of the day in the Octave), and the collect (also of the day). Note that at Lauds and Vespers, two alleluias are added to the final ‘Benedicamus Domino...’ versicle and response throughout the week. 

For Matins, the 1963 breviary provides two options for Matins of Monday and Tuesday in the Octave, both with two Nocturns, using either the psalms and antiphons of the feast or those of the day under one antiphon.  The Le Barroux Nocturnale follows the earlier practice of three Nocturns, which are said as for the Sunday, except for the readings. The three readings in the 1963 breviary are those of the Third Nocturn in the Nocturnale, but arranged as three readings rather than four.

Sunday 20 April – Easter Sunday, Class I with a Class I Octave, MD 328* ff. 

Monday 21 April – Class I. 

Tuesday 22 April – Class I. 

Wednesday 23 April – Class I. 

Thursday 24 April – Class I. 

Friday 25 April – Class I. 

Saturday 26 April – White Saturday in the Octave of Easter, Class I; 1 Vespers of Low Sunday, MD 339* ff. 

The Office during Eastertide 

Eastertide has its own Ordinary texts, including hymns for Matins, Lauds and Vespers, which can be found at MB 615/NM 363-3 for Matins, and MD 346*/AM 466 ff for the day hours. On weekdays, the Matins reading is a single short reading which is the same each day. At Sunday Lauds, the festal psalms (Psalms 92 and 99) are said instead of Psalms 50 and 117. 

Alleluias: During Eastertide the invitatory antiphons, antiphons, responsory verse and versicles (at the end of each Nocturn in Matins; associated with the chapters at Prime to None and Compline; and with the canticles at Lauds and Vespers) have the word alleluia added to them if one is not already included in the text.  This includes feasts where the relevant Common is used. 

Antiphons for the psalms: The number of antiphons for the psalms is reduced. At Matins, each Nocturn has only one antiphon; at Lauds, Psalm 50 and the two variable psalms of the day are said under one antiphon; and at Vespers, the psalms are all said under one antiphon. 

Canticle antiphons: At Lauds and Vespers there are canticle antiphons for each day of the Eastertide week.

First Week after Easter. 

Ordinary of Eastertide, MD 346* ff; default collect, MD 344*; canticle antiphons of the day. 

Sunday 27 April – White/Low Sunday (Octave Day of Easter), Class I, MD 341* ff. 

Monday 28 April – Class IV. 

Tuesday 29 April – SS Odo, Majolus, Odilo and Hugh, Class III, MD [115] ff. 

Wednesday 30 April – Class IV; com of St Catherine of Siena at Lauds, MD [121-2]. 1 Vespers of St Joseph.